“Like the thriving theater culture in

Chicago, which coalesced around a few key companies

and created an important center for the art form without
becoming a rival to New York City as a
center for theater commerce, so San Francisco’s
writers have come to recognize and trumpet
the idea that this city prizes their craft, its solitary
difficulty and what can emerge from it…”
—New York Times

Jonathan Ames takes on opening night

Sponsor / Media Kit

Born Under a Bar Sign
O RIGINALLY HATCHED OVER BEERS at the Edinburgh Castle pub
in 1999, Litstock debuted as a free one-day reading series in a
fog-bound Golden Gate Park. Co-organizers and local writers
Jane Ganahl and Jack Boulware quickly realized that booklovers wanted
something more. Against the backdrop of a technology-crazed San Francisco,
it was obvious that writers were still drawn to the city, and readers still craved
and appreciated the written word.
In 2002 the festival was rechristened Litquake, and began expanding its
programming to include all elements of the Bay Area literary scene. Taking a
cue from a USA Today report that San Franciscans spend twice the nation’s
average on books and booze, the festival inaugurated an immediately successful
closing night Lit Crawl bacchanal of events throughout the city’s Mission District.
Popular demand drove Litquake to expand even further, adding more national
and international authors, youth programs and book giveaways, a spring season
of literary events, and a special version of the Lit Crawl now held each year in
New York City.
Whether it’s poets reciting in a cathedral, authors discussing science versus
religion in a library, or novelists reading in a beekeeping supply store, the goal
remains the same: whet a broad range of literary appetites, present the literary
fare in a variety of traditional and unlikely venues, and make it vivid, real,
and entertaining.
Now grown to the largest independent literary festival on the West Coast,
Litquake continues its mission as a week-long literary spectacle for booklovers,
complete with cutting-edge panel discussions, unique cross-media events, and hundreds of readings.
Litquake seeks to foster interest in literature for people of all ages, perpetuate a sense of literary community,
and provide a vibrant forum for Bay Area writing as a complement to the city’s music, film, and cultural festivals.
Litquake is a project of the Litquake Foundation, a 501c3 nonprofit registered in the state of California.

Our Annual Gift to the City

Barbary Coast Award
Presented each year to a dynamic Bay Area
author for a lifetime of literary achievement,
this eagerly anticipated evening brings together
an outstanding line-up of literary stars, live
music, and multi-media presentations for a
novel, thoughtful and highly entertaining tribute.
A grand after-party follows. Recent recipients:
Armistead Maupin, Tobias Wolff, Amy Tan,
and Lawrence Ferlinghetti.
Kidquake
Our Kidquake festival-within-a-festival at the
San Francisco Public Library runs for two full
days and draws capacity crowds of wiggling,
joyful kids from the city’s public school system.
Children receive free books, listen to real-live
authors read and answer questions, and participate
in fun and educational learning workshops. For
many kids, Kidquake provides nothing short of
a revelation: books come from people! Recent
Kidquake partners: Children’s Book Project,
First Book, Tricycle Press, and Chronicle Books.
Genre Events
These niches rotate throughout the festival,
depending on availability of authors and release
of new books. All of these topics attract built-in
audiences and are wildly successful. Recent
A Festival for All Ages
events: Science, Essay Writing, Memoir, Science • Festival attendees come from
Fiction, Mystery, Noir, Erotica, Women’s Fiction, throughout northern California
Indie Publishing, Graphic and Illustrated Works, and the U.S., from Cape Cod
Music Writing, Gay and Lesbian, Playwriting, to Los Angeles
Adapting Book to Screen, Young Adult Writing,
Future of Food, and Historical Fiction. • Festival attendees come
from countries as far away
Industry Panels as Australia and Slovenia
Each year Litquake presents panel discussions for • 31% of Crawl attendees were
new authors, in conjunction with the Foundation in their 20s
Center. Topics include how to get your first book • 32% of Crawl attendees were
published, and lessons learned from first-time in their 30s
authors. These events are free to the public and
always fill to capacity. • 34% of Crawl attendees said it
was the only literary event they
Closing Night Lit Crawl and Gala Party attended all year
The Lit Crawl ends the festival memorably, • Kidquake programming currently
with a 50-venue thrill ride of readings and reaches approximately 1,000
events through the city’s Mission District. children each year
This three-hour free spectacle — held in bars,
cafes, galleries, boutiques, Laundromats, and
even bookstores — remains one of Litquake’s
most sought-after events for both writers and
readers. A raucous and glorious after-party
wraps up the festival’s ten days.
Who’s Done Litquake...
“Drinking and writing go together in San Francisco
like fog and July, and never is this more evident than
Dorothy Allison
Tamim Ansary during Litquake, when the Bay Area’s literary
Cara Black
Lewis Black
luminaries literally crawl out of the woodwork to
Susie Bright celebrate their craft.”
Ethan Canin
— USA Today
Peter Coyote
Diane DiPrima
James Ellroy Amy Tan
Jay Farrar
Lawrence Ferlinghetti
Neil Gaiman
Barry Gifford
Andrew Sean Greer
Daniel Handler/Lemony Snicket
Robert Hass Don Novello
Khaled Hosseini
Tracy Kidder
Maxine Hong Kingston
Dennis Lehane
Ray Manzarek
Armistead Maupin April
Terry McMillan Sinclair
Kathleen Norris
Ann Packer
ZZ Packer
Raj Patel
Tom Perrotta
Michael Pollan Words are Still a Moveable Feast
Mary Roach
Kay Ryan
According to a November 2009 survey by the
Dave Eggers Association of American Publishers:
George Saunders
Jane Smiley • National book sales increased 10.9%
Amber Tamblyn • E-book sales increased 199.9%
devorah major
Michelle Tea • Audiobook sales increased 69%
Lars Ulrich
• Adult hardcover sales increased 26.9%
Luis Alberto Urrea
Joyce Maynard • Higher education sales increased 24.2%
Sarah Vowell
Irvine Welsh • University press hardcover sales increased 21.9%
Tobias Wolff • K-12 reading textbook sales increased 18.4%
Lawrence Wright Laura Linney
Daisy Zamora

Litquake Advisory Board

Partners Make a Community Effort Clark Blaise
Litquake Foundation Po Bronson
826 Valencia Jewish Community Center, Phil Bronstein
American Conservatory Theatre San Francisco Association Board of Directors
Christine Comaford
Bomb Magazine ODC Theater Donna Bero Frances Dinkelspiel
California Academy of Sciences Porchlight Storytelling Alan Black Kevin Hunsanger
Center for the Literary Arts SF Sketchfest Jack Boulware — President and CEO Barbara Lane
Children’s Book Project San Francisco Center for the Book Jane Ganahl — President and CEO devorah major
Commonwealth Club San Francisco International Film Festival Kathi Kamen Goldmark Bharati Mukherjee
Contemporary Jewish Museum San Francisco Jazz Festival Deborah Krant — Secretary Craig Newmark
Elise Proulx — Vice President and CFO Elaine Petrocelli
Farrar, Straus and Giroux San Francisco Public Library
Ishmael Reed
First Book Word for Word Performing Arts Company
Marcia Schneider
Intersection for the Arts Youth Speaks Oscar Villalon
Jody Weiner
Charlie Winton